home decor and zakka goods. Always handmade.

I never get tired of the collections my littlest one brings in from outdoors. Yesterday, a bouquet of cottonwood leaves from my parent’s backyard. I’ve never smelled a bouquet of leaves before, and you know what? They smell great, like playing in autumn sunshine.

Sooner or later they will dry up and we will have to toss them, but by then there will be a new collection anyway. The scarecrow and the pumpkin with eyeballs, though…I might keep forever.

The wallet is available in the shop. (It has a zip compartment!) Go check it out.

I’ve been thinking about this as a test drive. As I wore it out and around, I was able to think through what kinds of tweaks and adjustments would improve upon it.

I really like the overall shape and the curved zipper, which allows for a bigger opening when I need to get into the bag. That means it’s large enough to hold my tablet and still give me maneuvering room to find my wallet. I think I got the strap just right: it’s comfy, and the weight is distributed well so it doesn’t dig into my shoulder and hurt. I still need to have taller and more petite friends try it on so I know if this is a workable strap length for people of other heights.

The slip pocket on the left is just right for phones. I want the one on the right to be larger so I can fit my bullet journal Ina pocket. It was recently pointed out to me that my journal is about the same size as a disposable diaper, meaning this could potentially double as a chic diaper bag.

The other side of the interior features the usual interior zip pocket. I wanted it big enough to hold an epi pen and a few antihistamine tablets as well as tampons. It definitely is sized correctly. I’m also still trying to find the optimal location for the key hook.

I’m going to start cutting out version 2 either today or tomorrow. I hope to have these bags in the shop by the Christmas season.

Have been working on a purse for myself, to use as a template for purses in the shop. Super excited about the bright organic canvas lining. These patches will embellish the outer flap and are so fun to make. I think sometimes about selling patches in the etsy shop, not just putting them on wallets and purses…

Reading WORK CLEAN, a book about the principles of mise en place, motivated me to deep clean my work area. It was long overdue. I have always had a minor obsession with mise en place and it has been renewed.

Getting work done in the summer with all three kids in the house is, in some ways, easier, mainly because the littlest has people around to play with and entertain her. In some ways it’s much harder, because bickering and messes.

Whatever: this week my bigs are off at day camp learning to build robots. They’re happy and learning and having fun. My littlest is happy too: no one is tickling her or hogging her toys.

And I am getting work done! The hot pink and chocolate wallets pictured below are already listed. The others pictured here will be soon! Thank you, day camp. Thank you.